Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1887-01-27
THE CALL OF ABRAM.
DR.. cURTlSS' NOTES ON THE SUM-
DAY SCHOOL LESSON.

Lesson v for Sunday, Jan. 3O-Lesson
Text, Gen. XII, 1-e-Golden Text, Gen.
Xii, 2: 'I VIII Bless Thee and Make
Thy Name Great.''
The true religion is not the result of de-
velopment, according to the Old Testament
The natural tendency of man, as seen in
Adam, in the men before the food, and
afterward, is downward. Gods grace is
manifested m choosing men like Noah as
the bearers Of the true revelation in the
midst of current world.
THE LESSON.
Abrams Country and Its Religion ". ".
What was Abrams countryS 1t was
Chaldea, one Of the most civilized countries
of antiquity, afterward known as Baby
lonia. 1t was country where the people
knew how to read and write, and where they
had great libraries Of baked clay tablets It
was country which had those wonderful
traditions of the creation and the food
which are preserved in the Chaldean Genesis.
Was not then the religion which Abram
brought with him to Canaan one of natural
origin? No. He came from Ur Of the
Chaldees, lying on the west bank Of the
Euphrates, now known as Mugheir, where
there was library which may yet see the
light, and where the moon god was wor-
SHIPPED. What he might learn there was
not the true religion. 1t was necessary
that he separate from his people if he was
to be the father Of a holy nation. He is
compelled in obeying God to leave every
thing that his heart holds dear-country,
kindred and fathers house. From a
49,
for an uncertainty for hx is to go to a
land which Jehovah will show him
(V. p But God blesses the people who
obey him, both according to the Old and
New Testaments. He tells him that he
will make him great nation, that he will
bless him and make his name great, and
bids him be blessing (Revised Version).
When men accept Gods will as theirs, he
takes care Of their reputation, does great
deal better for them than they could do for
themselves, and withal makes them a bless
ing to the world, because he puts them
where they can be most useful.
Blessing Through Abram ". 9.-If God
was for Abram, who could be against
him? God utters the great promise that
m him all the families of the earth should
be blessed. Some have thought that Abram
and his posterity were to be so prosperous
that all other peoples would say, Give US
the blessing of Abram, make US as fortu-
nate as he; but the New Testament gives
us deeper meaning. 1t tells US that the
Specification of this passage is that in
Abrams seed, which is Christ, all the ma
tions of the earth should be blessed. If the
scroll Of history could be unrolled from the
time when Jesus came until the present
we should see how wonderfully this promise
has been fulfilled.
(Vs. T. 81. Abram obeys God at time
of life when most men dislike q change.
His nephew Lot went with him. Why, we
do not know. Perhaps his eyes were daz-
zled with the desire of adventure and the
temporal side Of the promises made to his
uncle, if we may suppose that he heard of
them.
The place which they left, where they
was Haran In Mesopotamia, the country
between the Euphrates and the Tigris. Like
Ur, it was also one of the chief seats of the
worship of the moon god. The branch of
the family which remained there, il we
may judge from one Of the later members,
Iaban, had tendency to idolatry. It was
therefore desirable that Abram should be
completely cut off from any temptations
that might arise from his family.
The People of Canaan.-They went to
Canaan. We do not know what the popu-
lation was at that time. We read Of Hit
tites, who perhaps belonged to that famous
empire whose boundaries are described in
Josh. ia, and which was formidable rival
Of Egypt few hundred years later, in the
time of Rameses II. We also read Of the
Philistines, the Canaanites and other peoples.
Phenicians who had come originally from
the west shore of the Persian Gulf, not very
far away from Abrams old home, were
then in Egypt and on the shore of Palestine.
With these peoples of kindred speech Abram
could communicate without difficulty. They
were all idolaters.
Divine Worship w. 6.-Under Gods di-
rection Abram passes through part Of the
land of Canaan until he reaches Shechem,
between Mounts Ebal and Gerizim, and
famous tree, called in the Revised Version
the oak Of Moreh. This may have been IA
nous for its age, size and shade, and may
have had as much historical significance as
the old charter oak in Connecticut. If
heathen rites were connected with the tree,
as the modern critics maintain, we have no
right to suppose that Abram visited it for
the sake of the false worship associated
W1Gu II. 4uc SduddI4bC was bACn Ii IAAO
land, who was afterward to be so unfavor-
ably known by Abrams descendants.
(V. ~ Jehovah appears to Abram, and
promises to give his seed the land. Hun
dreds Of years were to intervene, the rigors
of Egyptian bondage were to be endured,
and many hard battle was to be fought
before this promise could be realized.
Abram first builds an altar in his new home
unto Jehovah, who appeared to him. He
thus becomes the spiritual ancestor of those
who have placed the Church first in going
to a new country, and have thus left their
mark on the world.
(V. 81 The building of altars seems to
have been characteristic Of his journeying.
Some people think that when they emigrate
to new country or are travelling they can
give up their religion. 1t is sometimes scan
dalous to see how those who are journeying
at home and abroad seem to forget God in
trying to conform to the customs Of q new
country; but Abram hallowed different
places by building affairs to Jehovah and
by calling on his name.-Sunday School
World.